5 Chapter 5.6: Raising the Curtains (6)

"Hah, hah....I did my best and I'm still only 6th place! I-Is Ken done with his match? Fuu".

Ike breathes heavily as he fell on his knees. He probably dreads the prospect of Sudou coming back.

"I don't reckon he'll get something like 4th place will he.......?".

It's not like I don't understand the desire to wish for something like that. If Sudou doesn't win, then surely he wouldn't punish the rest too. Sudou, whose results they're curious about, will have his turn in the final obstacle course race.

"What place did you get, Ayanokouji? Is it the death penalty for you?".

"I barely scraped 3rd place".

"Geh. Seriously? Saved by the lineup---".

Going along with Sudou's farce all the time.....in the first place getting punished seems like it'd be troublesome. I tried putting in just a little effort.

"It looks like Sudou-kun'll be going up against Shibata-kun".

"Ahh, looks like it".

Near Sudou, Shibata was waiting around while performing warm-up exercises. A formidable opponent has come forth.

"Haaaaah!? That Ken, he's up against Nomura and Suzuki again. That's unfair!".

However, at the same time, Ike was vexed after seeing Sudou's opponents in the contest other than Shibata and that lucky lineup.

Certainly, it's lucky to consecutively encounter those two from Class C who are said to be unathletic. Other than those guys, the students from Class A are neither good nor bad and with this, Sudou's victory is all but assured.

I understand why he'd lament it but Shibata is something else entirely.

If it's Shibata, who's said to be the fastest runner in Class B, he's sure to put up a fight for 1st place. In the two contests leading up to this, he's taken 1st place in both.

"Which one do you think's going to win?".

I asked for Hirata's opinion, since he knew Shibata well.

"I'm not sure. I know quite well that Shibata-kun's fast so I don't think he'll be going down easily. If it's a purely straightforward match then I have a feeling it might be Shibata-kun but...Sudou-kun was able to overcome the obstacles without much difficulty during practice after all. It's shaping up to be a really good match".

From Hirata's perspective, he's unable to tell which one of them would win since he knew both of them well.

Sudou himself believes there's no way he could possibly lose. It'd be good if his pride doesn't affect his run. But leaving aside my worries, the person himself awaited the start signal.

Once the runners in front finished with their race, the curtains rose on the final race.

Both Sudou and Shibata had a near simultaneous good start and they headed in the direction of the first obstacle: the balance beam. Sudou, though tall and possessing a large physique, was nevertheless able to cross over the narrow balance beam faster than anyone else could. His movement showed off his incredible sense of balance. Shibata came in at second place.

Despite his slight lateness, he also safely crossed the balance beam.

Sprinting a short distance immediately after, they crawled through the net that had been placed on the ground. Sudou, who advanced like a wild beast, only looking ahead of him. And Shibata, who seemed to be having fun chasing after him. The last obstacle was a sack, or to put it in a trendier way, it's to place both your legs in the sack and hop. Here, Sudou overcomes it once again with a nimbleness unbefitting of his physique but Shibata, hot on his tail, closes the distance between them.

"This is today's closest match".

Both seem to be evenly matched and both were trying to up their tactics. Shibata's followed him this far without either catching up or being shaken off. Sudou, who realized that existence, started to rush for the first time.

He probably heard hopping sounds behind him.

However, the lead he had created at the start still remained and with a difference of about a meter, he cut the tape and took 1st place. I suppose going all out had its effect on him, since even from a distance, I could tell that Sudou was breathing hard.

Sudou and Shibata were both evenly matched when it comes to speed. No, just like Hirata said, if it comes down to speed alone then Shibata may have been the superior one. Depending on the contest and the timing, I guess Sudou isn't invincible either.

In any case, Sudou has impressively secured 1st place three times consecutively. He's unmistakably one of our school year's best.

Sudou, who dazzlingly returned, began to act bullishly towards Ike, who shrank back.

"I was watching, Kanji, you were 6th place weren't you!?".

"Y-You almost didn't get 1st place too just now, did you? We're in the same boat!".

They were definitely not in the same boat at all. By saying unnecessary things like that, Ike got pinioned.

"I took 1st place. Well, that Shibata guy was pretty fast too though. I beat him".

Dropping Shibata down to 2nd place after he had secured 1st place twice in a row was a good sign for Sudou, who's aiming to be the best amongst our school year.